Income
Verification of Employment: Definition & Example
Also called: VOE, Employment verification
What Is a Verification of Employment?
Verification of employment (VOE) is the process of confirming with an employer, or a database of payroll records, that a person works there, along with details like job title, start date, and sometimes pay.
What does verification of employment mean?
A VOE can be done by phone, with a written form the employer completes, or through an employment data service that holds payroll records from participating employers. Mortgage lenders often do a verbal VOE shortly before closing to make sure the borrower is still employed.
Many employers only confirm dates of employment and title unless the employee authorizes more. Employer verifications can also be slow, because HR departments may take days to respond or route requests to a paid third-party service.
VOE confirms employment, not total income. Someone with several jobs, self-employment, or benefit income needs other documentation to show their full income.
Verification of employment example
A mortgage lender sends a written VOE form to a borrower’s employer. HR confirms the borrower has worked there since 2021 as a project manager at a base salary of $88,000. Ten days before closing, the lender calls HR again to confirm the borrower is still employed.
Related terms
- Proof of IncomeProof of income is documentation showing how much money a person earns, such as pay stubs, tax returns, bank statements, an employer letter, or a benefits statement.
- W-2 IncomeW-2 income is wages paid to an employee and reported on IRS Form W-2, with income and payroll taxes withheld by the employer before the employee is paid.
- Pay StubA pay stub is a document that accompanies a paycheck and itemizes the employee’s gross pay, taxes, deductions, and net pay for the pay period and year to date.
- Verification of DepositVerification of deposit (VOD) is a form, commonly used in mortgage lending, in which a bank confirms an applicant’s account details, current balance, and average balance.
- Income ContinuityIncome continuity is the likelihood that a source of income will keep being received in the future, often judged by its history and any known end date.
